main street books sterling publishing company (4 results)

Condition: Acceptable. Item in good condition. Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc.

Reprint (softcover). 4to (28cm by 22cm), c. 128pp. Illustrated throughout in b&w. Original laminated card wrappers. This book is in very good condition. ISBN 0806973382.

Hardcover. Condition: Fine. Dust Jacket Included. 1st Edition. oblong black hardbound 4to ~ 4º (quarto). large ("coffee table" book), international or priority shipping will cost extra. dustwrapper in protective plastic book jacket cover. fine cond. binding square & tight. covers clean. tiny bit of rubbing at spine bottom. edges clean. contents free of all markings. dustwrapper in fine cond. tiny nick on the rear flap edge, not torn or price clipped. nice clean copy. no library markings or store stamps, no stickers or bookplates, no names, no inking , no underlining, no remainder markings etc ~. looks new. like new. first edition. first printing ( # 1 in # line). ~ Please Note: book is larger than scanner so the photos are a bit cropped. 224p. glossy pages throughout. almost every page illustrated with color and/ or b&w. photos. approximately 135 "concept" cars featured. index. art history. automotive history. automotive design. ~ Cars will fly? That's what Detroit's top designers envision for the 21st century. And perhaps that's not so outrageous when you look at what seemed crazy 50 years ago to the auto buyer when General Motors brought out its first fantasy car~the "Y~Job." It had extras no one thought possible then~an electrically powered convertible top and power windows. Now they're as familiar as automatic transmissions (also an experimental car innovation). Back then, Detroit realized anything new is strange, and they had to introduce new features to the public before they could sell a car packed with these extras. Over 100 of these "idea" cars have been built and exhibited since 1938. All were experiments in design and engineering. Some of these innovations have made it into the cars we buy today: ~ Dual headlights ~Power windows, doors, trunk releases ~ Venetian~like blinds on the back window to shield the sun ~ Numerous aerodynamic style designs, from fins to lunar spaceships ~ Electronic maps on the dashboard ~ Four~wheel steering. Most, however, were too radical, impractical or expensive: Built~in hydraulic tire jacks ~An engine that burns animal, vegetable or mineral oil ~ A turbine engine requiring no timing, no tune~ups, no oil change~and only a single spark plug. But some might make it someday: Solar~power cars ~ Modular cars that can be changed from a sedan to a two~seater, pick~up, or bus ~ "Heads~up" displays that project the car's speed and condition on the windshield ~ Hovercraft cars that float on a cushion of air just a few inches off the ground ~ Cars without tires ~Laser guidance systems ~ Radar brakes. Nevertheless, all aroused our fantasies about what cars can do. And now, they've been collected into an album of 50 years of dreaming. In this dazzling, color~filled gallery, over 100 experimental "show cars" that never saw an assembly line pass on parade one last time. Each of these gorgeous specimens was originally designed by Detroit's Big Three to test the public's acceptance of new ideas. Most of them are gone now, collecting dust in labs, or dismantled and completely forgotten. Feast your eyes on General Motors' 1938 "Y~Job"~the first experimental car ever built (it was too advanced for its time, but elements of it showed up in car designs for years to come). Along the way, you'll also view rocket~shaped fantasies in chrome, the first gullwing doors, bubble tops, open~top cockpits, laser guidance systems, the first push~button car ever, and many other exotic, one~of~a~kind features. For 50 years, these test models attracted millions to auto shows around the country; now this splendid celebration in color is the only place you can find them.

Paperback. Condition: New.